Yesterday, in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, the electoral committee sent by Labour Party national leadership in Abuja, headed by national chairman, Sen. Nenadi Esther Usman, Ph.D., oversaw a ceremony that affirmed this writer as the party’s 2027 governorship candidate. The four-man (or, in these days of gender equality, two-man, two-woman) committee had as chairman, the party’s national vice chairman, South-South, Dr. Kingsley Okundaye. Members were Chief (Mrs.) Sopuruchi Barry Obinna and Comrade Akunnaya Onyekwere, while Mr Igoche Ejembi Joseph served as secretary. Since I was unopposed, and in line with the party’s consensus policy, this time round, the event went without too much drama. It was monitored by a five-man (again, three-woman, two-man) team from Akwa Ibom State office of Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as well as by Department of State Services, the police and party faithful from the 31 local government areas of the state.
Whether to the Labour Party family or all others who contributed directly or indirectly to the success of that event and indeed my emergence, the word is gratitude. I vow that I shall represent them in all honestly and honourably and humbly. I swear that I shall seek at all times to make God and them proud. However, there again, let me make bold to clarify that when an evil, mean opponent goes low with me or any other opponent in this race, I shall react exactly as we do in Africa.
Yes, Sir, I shall not play the humble game with any evil, wicked man: when an evil mean opponent goes low, I shall go lower. It is not humility or sportsmanship to allow evil have a field day. It is weakness. In fact, if you insist that we should ignore the silly rantings of an opponent who is scared stiff, this is my feed forward, early on: it shall not happen around or under me.
Evergreen former First Lady of the United States of America, Michelle Obama, in reacting to the relentless attacks by current President Donald Trump on the then incumbent, Barack Obama, said something about going high when they go low. Even in that land and indeed all of the West, political messaging is no longer that sane. It is worse in Africa and, if you like, especially in Nigeria. Those who understand the undercurrents of the game know that the best is to return fire for every fire, per time!
I am learning fast. I pledge that I shall keep to the rules of the game. I pledge that I shall engage fairly at all times. However, I cannot and shall not pledge that I shall guarantee that when an evil, mean opponent starts a verbal fire against me or any other opponent in this race, he shall not be met by a verbal fiery furnace or verbal firestorm, or a verbal combo.
Electioneering is serious business; very serious business. Electioneering is not for careless talkers. Electioneering, especially from governorship up, is for leaders. A known pretender to the throne who unfortunately finds himself where he should never have been in the first place must stop voicing his emptiness or I shall personally help him to display how shallow he is.
Let us return to the issues, for now. Akwa Ibom state governorship race 2027 is a tripartite golden opportunity. First, for the incumbent to show in clear terms what he has done with over three trillion Naira hitherto received from the centre plus only-God-knows-what was generated internally over the period. Owning or not owning a house is not a leadership or constitutional criterion and, the last time I checked, all male opponents touched our wives -past and present- and they are still alive. Neither Akwaibomights nor opponents shall be distracted by anybody’s unintelligent comedown mindset and speech strategy.
Second, real opponents must either jointly or severally show why we think we can do better. By real opponents, I mean what I mean; hello, sponsored opponents. We should not waste time blowing empty air. Akwa Ibom state 2027 governorship race is not about a person; it is about a people – a people so deceived, so insulted, so intimidated, so misgoverned and so taken advantage of, these past three years.
Third, Akwa Ibom electorate must keep their eyes on the ball. They must not get carried away by boasts or gifts or promises of money (which in any case belongs to them). They must search the real opponents and then compare and contrast with the incumbent. If for whatever reason they choose to wave off the sheer cunning ingratitude and insolence and maltreatment that we have come to know as lifelong mannerisms of the current man, then they should prepare to enjoy an endurance second term.
Fair, right? Akwaibomights deserve far, far, far better. We should expand the welfare net to include all.
Since they say we have a rich Akwa Ibom, we also want to see Akwaibomights as a rich people.
We want to see quality not bogus; respect not disdain; transparency not deception. Workers across all strata should be well treated and be seen to be so. Contractors should be paid, and in or on time. A leader worth his salt should never publicly shame a contractor he privately messed up.
I do not speak for Nsik Motors (and it should not be my business when one Nsit Ubium man seeks to destroy another) but if you leave the shores of Akwa Ibom to Abuja and up north for instance, you shall be shocked by the quality and quantity of jobs delivered by its construction arm. Why exactly does this mean man like to use his mouth to create bad press for Akwa Ibom brands? He once tried this with our precious Ibom Air. Today, while he gloats about opponents killing whatever they touch, can he at least run to resuscitate his big daddy business on Ikpa road, Uyo?
In the build-up to 2027, Akwaibomights want to see achievable ideas and verifiable roadmaps, not endless paperwork and recycled promises. 24-hour electricity does not require too much grammar and too many agencies. If the shame of having dishonoured the father of modern Akwa Ibom, a visionary ideas bank, will not let him go that way for help, his next-door colleague is readily available. Akwa Ibom can do with less merry-go-round; Akwa Ibom can do with less wild goose chase; Akwa Ibom can do with less afterthought appointments and actions meant to becloud 2027 reasoning.
Post-2027, unemployment and unemployability should no more remain unticked boxes in the Akwa Ibom leadership conversation. The state must create ways of helping businesses to perform maximally. The state must create training opportunities for our people. That will simultaneously stimulate our economy as well as create more space for many more of people to find jobs or earn a living.
Sanitation and security are two other areas of concern. They are not rocket science. We should engage traditional rulers and, per community, a sanitation and security workforce; we should go back to the days of sanitary inspectors; we should pay more attention to our forests, our waterways. Let sanitation and security be a daily affair and with the people directly involved.
To be sure, I congratulate the Akwa Ibom governor and other real standard bearers as announced by our respective parties. Real candidates who love our people should focus on value that we can add. Thankfully, we no longer would need to go all the way to the supreme court to prove that we have genuine academic qualifications to be governor. Nor do we need classmates or schoolmates to speak up for us.
What that means is more leg room. That space should be deployed for good, not evil. Everybody should be granted fair access, and respect; since we cannot tell exactly where this pendulum would swing. Akwa Ibom is in dire need of a receptionist governor; Akwa Ibom is in dire need of someone who understands that leadership is about service; that leadership is never about ego, never about greed, never about hate, never about possession, and certainly never about sickening hollowness.
God bless Nigeria!
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